Railway cross-tie.



PATLNTLD JULY so, 1907'. T. W. PLTTS. RAILWAY @Ross TLB.

APPLICATION FILLI MAR. 1907.

.i uniting the same.

THOMAS W. PITTS, F TAMPA, lFLORIDA.

minnares? GROSS-TIE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 30,1907.

Application filed March 6.1907. Serial No. 360,894.

To all 'whom lit may concern:

Be it known that 1, lnonAs W. PITTs, of Tampa, in

the county of Hillsboro, State of Florida, have invented cerlainnew anduseful improvements in Railway Cross-Tics, of which thc following is aspecification.

The object of my invcntionis to produce a railway cross-tie of compositeconcrete construction, which, being more durable and less expensive thanwood', combines all the advantages of a wooden made oi more durablematerial. y, l

An objection in practice to the use of the concrete cross-tic arisesfrom the liability oi' the tie' to cleavage longitudinally, or toparting between the rails -which it carries, which, tending to permitthe rails to spread, is particularly objectionable in. practice. Theseobjections may be, of course, eliminated by increasing the size of thetie indefinitely, but by my invention, 1 produce a tie of ordinarydimensions possessing all of the advantages in practice which aredesirable inthis class of objects. l

-What constitutes my invention will be hereinafter specified in detailand succinctly set'forth ,in the appended claims. I

In the accompanying drawing, which `constitutes a part oi thisapplication, Figure I isa perspective View of sections of a pair ofrails and one ofmy cross-ties ject matter of Fig. I, partially insection, withtirera-ils removed. Fig. 1111s `a group of an end and s ideelevation, respectively, of one of my pillow blocks. Fig. 1V is aperspective View of one end of the subject mat- 'ter of Fig'. I with aportieri cut away exhibiting the -pillow block therein.` *'Fig. V is'aview similar to Fig. 1V showing a completed end of vone of mycross-ties. lFig. Vl is aview corresponding to Fig. ll, showing across-tie embodying the subject matter of y Fig. 'V. FigVlI is atransverse section of VI taken through one of the blocks therein. Fig.VIII is a perspective view ofone of the side-plates, shown in Figs. V toVII inclusive, removed, looking at it from the inside.

y Referring to the numerals on the drawing, 1 indicates a railroadtie,.2 one rail, and the other secured thereto,

preferably, as by ordinary spikes 4.

My tie is made of concrete, or other like construction,

position. It is provided at suitable distances apart with 4woodenblocks' and G, which constitutepillow blocks for-the rails 2 and 3,respectively, and preferably.

project suflciently above thc surface of the concrete tie 1 tolafford awooden support l'or the rails. The blocks 5 ,and 6, though comparativelysmall in dimensions, are large enough `.to afford ample support for therails, and also to receive and hold the spikes 4 without danger ofcleavage.

' Wooden blocks'v set in cement ties have been used '.prior to myinvention, but' as used have been objected tie with those Figli is a topplan View ofthe subto for a variety of reasons, chief of which may bementioned the tendency, on one hand, tocleavage-of the concreteconstruction by reason ol' embodying the wooden blocks in it, or, on theother hand, the tendency to excessively amplify the dimensions oi theconcrete tie. By my invention, I overcome lthese difficulties by thehereinafter described moans substan'- tially. itsoppositc sides 7 and-8parallel and its ends only 9 ln the first place, l employ a blockhaving' and l10, as shown in Fig. lll, inclined. Wooden blocks tend toexpand by absorption of moisture only in the direction transverse' tothegrain. Consequently, by the employment of the parallel sides 7 and 8,the c1?- tent oi the blocks inthe direction iny which the resist- 'anceto cleavage in the concrete block is least, is rematerial of which it ismade, each Stringer being provided at the end with abend .l5 or othermeans of anchorage in the material. 'llhcsestringers are located eitherbelow the blocks 4 and 5, or to one side thereof, so as not to interferewith them. Adjacent to all of the blocks, near thc opposite ends of eachtie, l provide transverse metal binders 16, which coperatc with thestringers-12 to afford a strong, reinforced construction about therecesses Whose sides incase the respective blocks.

The binders are distributed about the4 recesses which the blocks, butthey may be located midwise of the blocks, lif preferred, and bent'downwardly underneath the blocks, as indicated at 161L in Figs,v IV andV11 of the drawing. l

, .lhc binders 1G may be provided with b ent ends 17 as a. means olanchoring them in place', but if preferred, the tie may be' providedvupon .opposite sides with metal plates 18, secured vto the binders as bybont or riveted heads 19, and provided also with independent means' of`anchorage in the concrete mass,

Such means of anchorage may vconsist of 4t'eeth v-2() cut mit andinwardly from Ithe metal of the plate, and of oppositely inturne'dflanges 21. The plates .18 may be employed, as stated, near the'oppositeendsfof the tie l, or they may extend nearly from one end tothe other ofthev tie, as shown inn-Fig'. VI, wherein they Forthatreasoru I provide metal stringers l2 consisting 0f -bars or strandsof wire extending nearly from one end of the concrete tie to the other,and yembedded in the.

-incase the blocks 5 and (i so as not to interfere with* .are indicatedby the numeri 22. The plates 22 are substantially identical With theplates y155, with the exception oi their relative extent.' Theconstructon oi the plates 22 and i8 is equally well shown inv Fig. vin.V

The tio l is preferably provided upon its bottoni with projeetiom` 23,located underneath the blocks,

and t5, respectively7 designed to lend additional weirzht oi concretematerial to the tie at points where, in patetico, it is siibjeetetl tothe greutest Strain.

ln the nntnul'acture of my block, the ties are preierahly formed iu :tmold lor box o suitable dimensions, wherein ure properly distributed, nsthe tie is being built, the stringers ,l5 und binders iti, together'with the plut/es i8 or22, if employed. The concrete may be formed in themold by any ofthe Well known processes, either by pouringfor filling.tnd tamping, or any other preferred method;

lt'` should be observed that, the pltttcs .t8 or 22, ii.

v.etnplyyo'd together with the hinders lli, are inc0rp0- ratedi'n theconcrete eonntructimi as it is built up.

"lhi' is, one, ditin'g'guishing feature of my invention,

the employment oi metal sides plates in connection ivith `cont-,retevconstruction in railroad ties having been utteinptetl hut withoutprovini-'ln t'or pernntnently ineorporztting the plates into thtconntrueton of the tie let-ll'. ln the :tttentpts referred. to. theuseof bolts :intl rivets' has deietttetl the end in view by reunen of thetendency ol' the members to work loose und to produce disintegration ollthe composite lQtructure,

- When in the course of the manufacture of the tie the concrete muterinlhas been supplied in stlfl'fient tguttntily fo fill the required depthin the bottom ol the boxer mold in Whit-h the eonerete is formed, the

.blocks "i und fl, previously preput'ctl, :1re set in pince,

and. the concrete is filled in :wound them until the 'theniold, itpresents an appearance substantially corresponding to that illustratedin Fig. I, wherein the body oi the tie is made of concrete construction,

4above the surface' oi which are presented the surfaces of the pillowblocks 5 and 6 for the support of the rails. The feature lof myinvention. is in providing secure anchorage without danger olf thecleavage of the pillow blocks and by means which will not permit. thepillow blocks, in service, to Work loose within the cement which incasesthem. l

What I claim is:

l. 'fiile combination' with' a. concrete 'railroad tie p lo-lvided withpillo\v-l ioekrecosses und pillow blocks therein.

of metallic Stringer longitudinally disposed and embedded in theconcrete structure. and metallichinders"disposed ytramsversiely to' thestringers adjztctntto the pillow-blockrecossts nnd'ztlso embedded in theconcrete structure.

'.2` Thecombination with :i Concrete railroudiie prof` videdwith"pillo\vhloekrecesses aud-pillow hioe'ks therein, of nietztlliestring-gers longitudinally disposed and embedded in the; concreteht'ructure, land metallic hinders disposed- Y transversely to thtlstringerti adjacent to the pillovvlbloclt; roeenls und also embedded inthe concretestrueturef'tl stringere :ind hinders being lot-ated so as'not to interfere with the pilloW-bloelH'eees il, in :t: rnilrontl-tie,tho strurtw'ture provided with -pillow-hlock-recesses md pillenL blockstherein. of' opposite lateral metnl plutbsprovided with teeth :intl withinturned flanges, saidV teeth and in.

tui-nett tlttnges'lttng embedded in the'conerete structure.

ornhination with -@concrete l ln testimony hereof I have hereunto 'gnedmy naine

